Llandaff Cathedral

Llandaff Cathedral, cathedral situated by the River Taff at Llandaff, near Cardiff, Wales. The original building on the site was founded in the 6th century by St Teilo to house a monastic community. However, it was replaced in the 12th century by a Norman church, which later became the city’s cathedral.

The building fell into a state of disrepair as a result of attacks by soldiers under the command of Oliver Cromwell during the English Civil War, and during the period following the Reformation, the south-west tower and nave roof collapsed. In the early 1840s the building was restored with the aid of Pre-Raphaelite artists including Edward Burne-Jones, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and the firm of William Morris, who were commissioned to produce new stained-glass windows and decorative panelling. However, after damage sustained as a result of bombing during World War II, extensive restoration was again necessary.

As a result of the cathedral’s history, its exterior now displays a fusion of different styles and ages, exemplified in the mismatched 15th- and 19th-century western towers. Although some of the original Norman structure still remains, the building is now mainly composed of Early English and Decorated Gothic styles (see Gothic Art and Architecture). The restoration project was completed in 1960 with the addition of the huge statue Christus, by Sir Jacob Epstein, the only entirely new feature to be added in the period following World War II. In stark contrast to the modern work is the cathedral’s only pre-Norman remnant, a 10th-century Celtic cross (see Celtic Art).